Current Events > I got in trouble at the public school, but not for reasons you might expect...

(+) Yeah! (+)

I'm currently an elementary education major. At the moment, I get to go to a public school twice a week mostly to observe but also to teach a handful of lessons. Today, I did something and it was perceived as wrong. Instead of typing it, I'm going to post the letter I sent to my professor that explains the situation.

Today, there was an incident which resulted in me making a bad judgment call. Around the time of 9:15 AM in [REDACTED] Elementary's third grade [wing], I was seen grabbing for a student and resulted in me catching his hood.

What happened

One student with behavior problems, Braylon, was becoming frustrated that another student "cut" in front of him. In his own lack of judgment, he began charging toward the door to regain his position. At the time, a large number of students were filing into the classroom. What I could only imagine was that Braylon, a larger student than his peers, would bulldoze through the students. In an attempt to stop him, I reached out my hand and caught his hood which did stop him. My intention was to prevent the other students from being hurt.

Reflection

Upon reflecting about this situation, I see that I did act rashly. Originally, Braylon was walking with his aide until he began to run towards the door. I realize the aide is in this position to prevent this from happening and will refer to her to handle this kind of situation in the first place. I am also not trained to handle these types of situations.

While I had the best of intentions for the other students, what I failed to realize is that I did not have the best intentions for Braylon. Several things could have gone worse such as he could become choked or fall backwards. Furthermore, if we are to teach Braylon how to behave, using a risky maneuver does not demonstrate good modeling from me.

In the event that this does happen again, I will let the aide or the cooperating teacher handle these situations. I will also ask about the expected response I should have and the rules that apply to student safety and beyond.

Thoughts? Did they jump to conclusions? Did I actually do something wrong?

What kind of trouble did you get in?

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Shablagoo posted...

What kind of trouble did you get in?

My professor was actually at the elementary school while I was there. I guess whoever saw it (likely the aide) told him. He pulled me aside and told me I needed to write a report on what happened so they'd have it for their records.
But basically, I'm now walking on thin ice.

Thoughts?

This is a good learning experience. You messed up today, but you know why and what to do in similar situations in the future. No one was hurt, so ultimately this will pass.

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Shablagoo posted...

What kind of trouble did you get in?

Detention

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